
On Wednesday, Thrivent expanded its fund suite with the launch of two new actively managed ETFs. Both funds offer differing takes on bond investing.
A Core-Plus Plan
The Thrivent Core Plus Bond ETF (TCPB) aims to provide current income. Additionally, the fund has a secondary goal of generating capital growth and total return. TCPB has a net expense ratio of 0.39%.
The ETF primarily allocates its assets toward investment-grade debt securities. However, as a core-plus-bond fund, TCPB may also invest up to 30% of its assets in junk bonds. In terms of portfolio duration, the fund generally chooses assets of any particular duration or maturity.
Notably, TCPB may invest in international debt securities denominated in U.S. dollars. This includes companies based in emerging markets.
Focus on Shorter Duration
Meanwhile, the Thrivent Ultra Short Bond ETF (TUSB) looks to generate strong income while preserving capital. It operates with a net expense ratio of 20%.
The wide majority of assets within TUSB’s portfolio are invested in investment-grade bonds. As the fund’s title may imply, the fund expects to have an average maturity of two years or less.
For both ETFs, Thrivent’s portfolio team employs a mix of fundamental and other research techniques to choose assets for investment. These fundamental techniques include evaluating the financial profile, management expertise, and business prospects of eligible issuers. By doing so, the fund may be in a better position to locate companies with more stable return potential.
“Great to see Thrivent bring more of its mutual fund expertise to the ETF space and start to build out its fixed income lineup," noted Kirsten Chang, senior industry analyst at VettaFi. "Advisors have shown relentless demand for active bond ETFs, which had a record year of inflows in 2024 and are likely headed for another this year.”
TCPB and TUSB are not the first ETFs from Thrivent to be listed in the United States. Furthermore, the first Thrivent ETF, the Thrivent Small-Mid Cap Equity ETF (TSME ), has over $250 million in assets under management.
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